Going to attempt to smoke a brisket tomorrow and was wondering how much wood I'll need.

What's your smoker setup? Offset firebox, big kettle-style grill?

And how big's the brisket?

Offset, about 12 pounds.

Get two bags of mesquite or pecan wood, they usually call them
"smokin' chunks" from HEB, Krogers, Randalls, any grocery store should have 'em.

Get a nice fire going in the firebox, let it burn down to coals, put your brisket on (fat side up) and then add a few chunks of wood to the fire. Let that go for about an hour, check it and just add more chunks as needed. It's pretty intuitive, you'll be able to judge how much to add and how often.

For a 12 lb. brisket you probably want to go about 9 - 10 hours.

Try to keep the temp. between 225 - 250.

Thanks for the tips. I've got it rolling now, hopefully it turns out good.

you might want to wrap it in foil after 4 or 5 hrs of smoke. then keep cooking it.

I always soak my wood in water over night to promote more smoke.

heck with that ... when it has smoked all i want it to & the time for wrapping in foil comes, i have my oven preheated to 250 ... easy street

Well how was it?

fyi...academy is selling very large bags (40 lbs or more) - pecan, mesquite, hickory - 10.99

You'll get lots of opinions on smoking brisket. I suggest that you DO NOT try to smoke a brisket at 225 for the first time. Go 275 pit temperature and smoke it over hickory for three or four hours and then wrap it in foil and finish it in the oven at 275 for another three hours or so until a meat thermometer pushes in easy and it's about 195 deg internal temperature. You don't need a lot of wood this way- probably seven or eight pounds of chunks or a few medium sized logs over a bed of burned down charcoal. Also, you can go with a simple salt and pepper rub for the first time and it will turn out really nicely. Start simple and go fancy later once you master the basics, which is making sure the brisket is actually done but not overdone.

Finally...do not use lighter fluid to start your charcoal. And have fun.

-Pat

Finally...do not use lighter fluid to start your charcoal. And have fun.

+1000 on that. Get a chimney starter and use a couple sheets of wadded up newspaper.

Intersting.

be careful doing this, it can really cool down your coal bed